Just been to HV weaning session. Hmmmmmmm.

[LittleMissMac]

I've just been to the weaning session advertised in my DS's red book at our local clinic, run by HVs. Several pauses for thought:

I mentioned that I was interested in baby-led weaning but this wasn't brought up during the session. TBH I thought that would be the case and just kept my mouth zipped - life's too short to be given the "we think you're a bit of a weirdo" lecture, and I'm not articulate enough about it (yet! hah!) to be able to stand up for myself.

The HVs were muttering about six months being the new guidelines for weaning, but indicating strongly that you should really be doing it before that - more like 5 or 5.5 months, because "the iron drops off at six months". They hinted that it might be quite dangerous to wait until six months. I'm glad I know differently, but this is only thanks to obsessive MNing: what will the other mums in the session do, I wonder?

Apparently if I continue to breastfeed after six months, I ought to be giving DS vitamin drops (A,C&D) because breast milk isn't going to give him enough, if he's only eating small amounts of solid (read puréed) food. WTF? Really??? What did mums do in The Olden Days before formula and vitamin drops? (Please correct me if I'm wrong and this isn't actually codswallop... it just seems so unlikely!)

And we had a good old romp through Purée 101. The closest we got to real food was breadsticks and toast at one year old.

Little do they know that LittleMrDS is being lined up for real, grown up broccoli and other delights whenever he starts showing an interest after 26 weeks. Hah!

[moljam]

my hv hated me at that session as didnt agree that ds being brought up as veggie!but i went prepared so gave her answers for all her queries of what 'he'd be lacking as veggie'

[Karen999]

Unbelievable!! My HV told me to start weaning at 4 months!! Even when I questoned her about the '6 month' mark she said no, wean at 4 months! Tbh I have never went back although I took her at about 8 months to get weighed. When she asked how she was getting on with solids, I said "Great...am doing BLW and its fanatastic....dont know why you dont talk about it really." That shut her up!

[GetOrfMoiLand]

Has anyone anywhere ever had some good, up-to-date and correct advice from a HV? They are all (a) mad (b) crap and (c) should be put out to pasture.

When dd was a baby the 2 HVs I came into contact with were bitches.

Throw the bloody red book away!

[Karen999]

The HV who visited me after I got home was a trainee (fair enough)

She was soooo nervous and when I got my boobs out to bf you would have thought that I had just flashed at her.....could not believe it but made me and DP chuckle....

[Iklboo]

Well, don't you know that in the 'olden days before formula & vitamin drops' babies were weaned at 2 hours old onto steak & kidney pies, tripe & onions & balck pudding

[clarinsgirl]

You have made a basic mistake. You assumed that anything a HV had to say would be a) correct, b) helpful.

Good job you MN!

I don't get the point of Health visitors. If you have a health concern, go to the doctor. If you want a visitor ring a friend. If you need some advice, MN.

[Sparkletastic]

Whoah there GetOrf - put that tar brush away! I've come across most of the HV team in my area at one time or another due to moving house, DD2 with her 'oddities' etc. They've all been wonderful - really up on BLW and BF-ing, lots of useful advice which is never forced on you, supportive, kind and all with GSOH. In fact if I were a chap I would have plighted my troth to them.

[clarinsgirl]

Really Sparkletastic? That's great to hear. Sadly my experience of them is very poor.

[LittleMissMac]

Darn it. Just realised I posted my original post twice. Sorry chaps.

Sparkletastic - lucky you to have good HVs. I don't think that all HVs are evil, by the way, I was just really disappointed that my lot were a bit behind the times and vaguely misleading.

[Sparkletastic]

Maybe its because I live in a knit your own muesli, radical, bohemian, free thinking kinda place?! It's only East Sussex mind you...

[Iklboo]

I like my HV - she's very down to earth, normal and helpful. She's a big fan of "mum knows best" and "do what YOU think is right for your baby"

Mind you, she was a midwife for about a gazillion years before becoming a HV. DOn't know if that has any affect on it

[EachPeachPearMum]

Could I just say that our weaning talk by health visitors (about 20 mo ago) was actually really helpful. Emphasised waiting until 23 weeks, and gave loads of suggestions for finger foods that 6monthers could get into, alongside pureed fruit and veg. I didn't hear of BLW until dd was about 7 or 8mo, but HV's approach was advocating getting them onto proper family food earlyish- to lessen food faddiness, encourage exposure to a wide range of foods/tastes etc.

[slug]

Mine told us not to wean on 'foreign' food because once they got a liking for it they wouldn'tgo back. And what constitutes foreign food I hear you ask? Apparantly sweet potato, avocado, brocolli and asparagus.

[GetOrfMoiLand]

lol brocolli being classed as foreign food.

[tiktok]

LittleMM - the vits thing is not total rubbish - but it's because lifestyles in the 21st century may not get babies and mums outside often enough to make Vit D. Not really to do with breastmilk.

It is official guidance that bf babies have the drops (the C and A are there because they come packaged with the D) as formula is already supplemented with them.

If you get outside on most days you will be fine unless you have black or brown skin.

Amazing how they will stick to that guidance but not the excl bf to 6 mths guidance....

[LittleMissMac]

Thanks for that tiktok. I had a look on kellymom after doing a search on here on the vits thing (because it just seemed so odd) and I can see that D is an issue where the child isn't getting enough sunlight, partic in northern climes such as Scandinavia, northern Canada, and, as you say, when the baby has dark skin. Shame the HVs didn't explain this, and I guess that my 2-3 hours a day pushing the pram will be enough to escape the dreaded rickets .

[Desiderata]

Why is it always assumed that HVs don't know what they're talking about? It must be intensely irritating for them.

[bookwormmum]

I saw my Health Visitor about twice . We never discussed weaning, BLW or otherwise. Nice girl but I imagine she would find it hard going into places where the new parents are more gung-ho than I am at facing up to health professionals.

Re the vitamin thing - maybe that's why babies used to be wrapped up and plonked in the fresh air, come winter or summer, for an hour everyday? Perhaps some of these old wives tales aren't so bonkers after all?

[LittleMissMac]

Desiderata, I don't think that HVs are morons. I just think these particular HVs could have explained things better, giving enough information to allow the mums to make informed decisions about how to wean their bubs - rather than the prescriptive and slightly muddled approach we got instead.

[edam]

Desi, I think it might have something to do with widespread ignorance of everything to do with breastfeeding and weaning amongst HVs. My original HV was fab btw so there are some good ones out there. But HVs don't have to keep their knowledge up to date and many don't bother. There's no protected time for training - some I know of won a bloody award for setting up a monthly lunchtime meeting to keep up with good practice. It was such a radical idea that they won the local award and were shortlisted for a national.

[tiktok]

Desi - it's well-researched that this whole area (infant feeding and weaning) is not well-taught to HVs and there is no standard they have to meet for it, and no compulsory in-service to update them on these matters (contrast this with immunisation and child protection, where the updating is compulsory - justifiably so, of course, but it shd be extended to include feeding which after all affects every mother and baby on their books!).

It's simply not controversial to say that many are very poorly taught and very ignorant in these topics. I don't suppose they are 'morons' but the culture of HVs is such that feeding is not given importance and they are not supported to update themselves.

The good health visitors know this is the case and are aware that many of their colleagues let mothers and babies down - very badly.

[marshabourbon]

My hv came round this week to talk about weaning, and she was great. She's an older woman (with a HUGE puff of white hair that Mia just stared at!).She said several times, 'do not puree the food'. She said just mash it, and was all for finger foods and not starting til 26 weeks. Although I'm not planning on 100% blw, I wanted to use some of the ideas and she was all for getting her onto proper food as quick as possible.She's been 'in the trade' for about 30 years, so probably has seen the pitfalls of puree!